Fineprint

Posted in Marketing and Strategy Terms, Total Reads: 1014

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Definition: Fineprint

Fineprint refers to the portion of a contract/document that contains restrictions or limitations in small font or obscure language. This is deliberately ambiguous or less noticeable with an intention to deceive the consumer. The fine print is basically compliance with legal technicalities that necessitate full disclosure of terms and conditions as well as the limitations of the product or offer being promoted. The larger print is used along with the fine print by the marketer to make the consumer believe that the promotion is more advantageous than it really is. The use of this tactic has become very common. Most trade regulations require clear terms of the offer.

Consider the following ad that advertises a discount offer plus an assured gift in the form a Cookware Set worth Rs. 2499 with purchase of Elica products. The offer is very attractive but comes with fine-print. The fine print clarifies that the offer is valid only in select cities and is valid only until the stocks last. It also states that an extra Rs. 300 would be charged on these offers as local levies. The fine-print informs the consumer that the pictorial representation may not be identical to the actual products.

However, most parts of fineprint go unnoticed by customers and that’s exactly why marketers use this tactic.

The image above highlights the fineprint in an advertisement

Hence, this concludes the definition of Fineprint along with its overview.

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